Stock Market Rally: Sensex Zooms 1,241 Points; Nifty Tops 21,700. Reliance Surges 6 Per Cent

Stock update: On the 30-share Sensex platform, Reliance jumped 6.6 per cent, followed by Tata Motors, Power Grid, L&T, NTPC, Kotak Bank, NTPC. ITC, Infosys, JSW Steel, TechM, TCS were among the losers

The two key equity benchmarks, Sensex and Nifty, on Monday zoomed higher following a rally in Reliance shares and robust global cues. The S&P BSE Sensex gained almost 1,300 points intra-day before closing 1,241 points higher at 71,942. On the other hand, the NSE Nifty50 shut shop 385 points higher at 21,738.

On the 30-share Sensex platform, Reliance jumped 6.6 per cent, followed by Tata Motors, Power Grid, L&T, NTPC, Kotak Bank, NTPC. On the down side, ITC, Infosys, JSW Steel, TechM, TCS were among the losers.

The volatility index, India VIX, also sprinted nearly 13 per cent today.

In the broader markets, the BSE Midcap index added 1.68 per cent, while the BSE Smallcap advanced 1.02 per cent.

Sectorally, Nifty PSU Bank logged gains of 2.4 per cent. The Nifty Auto, and Financial Services indices were the other top gainers, up 1.6 per cent each.

In the previous session on Friday, Sensex and Nifty, remained shut on account of Republic Day.

In Asian markets, Seoul, Tokyo, and Hong Kong settled in the positive territory, while Shanghai ended lower. European markets were trading mostly lower. The US markets had ended on a mixed note on Friday.

Global oil benchmark Brent crude declined 0.18 per cent to $83.40 a barrel.

Foreign Institutional Investors (FIIs) offloaded equities worth Rs 2,144.06 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.

Meanwhile, the rupee depreciated 3 paise to 83.14 (provisional) against the US dollar on Monday, as rising crude oil prices in international markets and dollar demand from importers dented investor sentiments. Forex traders said the rupee traded in a narrow range as the support from positive domestic equities was offset by persistent foreign fund outflows.

At the interbank foreign exchange market, the local unit opened at 83.14 against the US dollar. During the day, it witnessed an intraday high of 83.13 and a low of 83.15 against the American currency. The local unit finally settled at 83.14 (provisional) against the dollar, down by 3 paise from its previous close. On Thursday, the rupee rose 1 paisa in a range-bound trade to close at 83.11 against the US dollar.